St John the Baptist Catholic Primary School Clinton eNewsletter

From Our Principal ...

Dear Families

It was nice to see families and their kids together at our Welcome BBQ of Friday night. It was a simple low key event and, after the on going sagas of Covid restrictions, a nice way to catch up with families at the start of the year.

A huge thank to our Parents and Friends Association ( P&F) for putting the evening on. Our AGM was held last week and we are looking forward to working with the new President, Lindsay Windress and the executive.

P&F is an opportunity for parents to be a part of what happens at St John’s. We don’t fundraise for the association. All families are levied $30 per term and every cent goes to the association. Our focus this year is to continue to bring social and family events back onto the St John’s calendar.

Meetings are on the second and second last week of every term. Details are always in the newsletter. Come along for a look and see what happens.

Have a great week and hug your kids.

Regards
Jamie Emerick
Principal

Parking

The front visitor carpark is for short term visitors only. The visitor carpark is NOT a pick-up or drop-off area for students.

Parents are not to park or stop in a waiting queue in the bus stop zone on J Hickey Avenue.

Parent parking can be found in the large rear carpark at Laner Street or the surrounding streets around the school. For the safety of our students, under no circumstances are parents to park in either of the drop-off/pick-up areas or on grass verges and/or footpaths near drop-off/pick-up areas.

Thank you for helping to keep our students, families and staff safe.

Collecting Students During School Hours

To minimise disruption to classroom learning, if you need to collect your child during school hours, please report to the office and wait for your child at the office.

Prep parents only, may collect their child from their classroom after signing them out at the office.

Please note on Friday afternoons, it can be very difficult to locate your child/ren as they will be doing activities with their buddies. To avoid delays, please pre-arrange early collection of your child/ren with your child's teacher.

Thank you in advance for your understanding and assistance with this.

Information & Communication Technologies (ICT) Code of Practice

Thank you to parents who have already accepted through Parent Lounge.

Due to Diocesan requirements, failure to accept the ICT Code of Practice Agreement on Parent Lounge by Friday 16 February 2024, will result in loss of access of ICT for your child at St John’s.

Each year, age-appropriate ICT Codes of Practice are distributed to all students in Years 3-6. Teachers will provide students with relevant and appropriate information and training about the ICT Codes of Practice during class this week.

In an effort to be sustainable and conserve resources, the ICT Code of Practice was be placed on Parent Lounge last week, so families can discuss the ICT Code of Practice with their children and then indicate their acceptance electronically by ticking the acceptance box on Parent Lounge by Friday 16 February.

Additionally:

The Student Letter of Agreement (last page of the Year 3-6 document) will be printed at school and signed by each student in Year 3-6 prior to Friday 16 February.

The signed Agreement is kept for the duration of the school year.

Student Free Day - Friday 16 February

Shrove Tuesday - Tomorrow - Help Please

Tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday, also known as ‘Pancake Day’. St John’s provide pancakes to all students. All dietary requirements are catered for on the day by our wonderful tuckshop team. Parents do not need to prepare anything, just come in and volunteer if you are able. Contact Jess Pailthorpe in the tuckshop on jessica_pailthorpe@rok.catholic.edu.au if you can help.

What is Shrove Tuesday?

Pancake Day, also known as Shrove Tuesday, is always the day before Ash Wednesday on the Christian calendar. The word ‘shrove’ originates from the English word ‘shrive’, which is the act of confessing one’s sins and doing penance. Making pancakes is a tradition that was developed as a means of using up rich foods such as eggs, milk, sugar and butter before the 40-days of fasting.

Why is it called Ash Wednesday?

Ash Wednesday traditionally marks the first day of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting before Easter Sunday. It gets its name from the ashes that are created from burning palm leaf crosses from the previous year’s Palm Sunday.

What is Lent?

Beginning on Ash Wednesday, Lent is the 40-day period before Easter in the Christian calendar. By observing Lent, Christians replicate the suffering and sacrifice Jesus Christ faced for 40 days in the desert. A lot of people use Lent to test their willpower, giving up chocolate, coffee or sweet treats before Easter. It is also about prayer and giving something of oneself such as checking on a friend or asking someone to play.

Ash Wednesday: The Beginning of Lent

Lent is an important season for Catholic believers. It begins on Ash Wednesday and lasts for 40 days until Easter.

Many people may have an idea of Lent as giving up yummy treats, but it is much more than this.

The Church’s teachings focus on three themes of Fasting, Praying and Giving.

Fasting is not only about food. Children under the age of 18 are not required to fast but believers over the age of 14 are obliged to not eat meat on Fridays during Lent.

How do we encourage students to engage with this?

They could make a Lenten promise to reduce or give up screen time. As a family, you could attend Mass or another church service throughout Lent and fast from your normal routine. Drinking water instead of soft drink would be a great idea.

Praying can include a regular prayer before bedtime, or a prayer to start the day.

How do we encourage students to engage with this?

Praying for people other than ourselves can be a great focus. Just sitting quietly and thinking about God and His unending love can be a prayer. The Church teaches, God knows the unspoken prayers of our heart.

Giving can be a giving of our time, not just our treasures or money. It can be sharing our gifts of friendliness, compassion and practical natures.

How do we encourage students to engage with this?

Giving a helping hand to a friend or looking out for someone who may need a friend at playtime can help. Sometimes students decide to give up tuckshop to donate to Project Compassion. Presenting as the heart of God through the works of our hands and feet can show God’s love. Offering to complete jobs at home or for older people we know. Just calling Grandma and having a long chat could make someone’s day.

The video is a moving tribute to why Jesus’ sacrifice impacts people today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NFPb9jbi0s

Project Compassion

During Lent, Project Compassion is a major focus for Catholic schools and parishes. This is led by Caritas, a Catholic service organisation. Project Compassion provides weekly stories throughout Lent. These always have a positive outlook and intent. The aim is to increase awareness of the circumstances of others and to walk in their shoes for a moment. The strength shown by people in other communities is always inspiring. Please take the time to view this 4-minute video and discuss it with your children, family and friends.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89bJV-w_wXk

Sacrament of Confirmation - Save the Date

The Sacrament of Confirmation will be celebrated by Bishop Michael at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church on Friday 14 June and Saturday 15 June.

Families with children intending to take the sacrament need to keep either of those dates free.

Formation sessions for the Sacrament of Confirmation will be held on the following dates:

First Formation Session – Saturday 18 May 2024 OR Sunday 19 May 2024
Second Formation Session – Saturday 1 June 2024 OR Sunday 2 June 2024

These are held either before or after mass for one hour.

St John’s Student Council

A Student Council is a group of students who represent their classmates in discussing school issues and ideas, and make decisions that affect the whole school.

Our Student Council will help to make decisions about school projects, organise some events, make decisions on what students need at St John’s and pose Student Voice questions to the school community.

Our Student Council will be run by students, with some assistance from Mrs. Mitchell and Mrs. McVean.

The Student Council will meet each fortnight (at a day and time yet to be decided) and light refreshments will be served at each meeting.

It is very important for St John’s students to have a Student Council. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) state that “Children and young people should have a say in decisions that affect their lives”.

It is our goal at St John’s to provide a meaningful ways for our students to voice their opinions and have their views considered, on decisions that impact them at St John’s.

At the end of last week, each class in Years 3-6 held an in-class election to vote in one classmate to be their Class Representative on the Student Council.

Congratulations to the following students who were elected:

3K Thomas Braddock
3L Ashleigh Nietfeld
3S Easton Chynoweth
4K Poppy Beresford
4P Hamish Petersen
4R Harrison Roberts
5E Cooper Sparkman
5K Sonny Taylor
5R Evie Woodward
6B Harley Stokes
6D Gielle Panis
6G Lucy Hodge

Student Council Request

If you are cleaning out your cupboards, please consider donating specific items to the School Student Council please?

We are eager to have books in good condition donated to the school for a Project Compassion Stall in 2024. We are also looking for football and soccer boots you may have grown out of. These will be used in a Books, Boot and Biscuit Stall in Term 1, 2024.

Boots need to be clean and donated in a clear large snap lock bag with the size recorded on it.

Thank you for your generosity.

Rugby League Trials - Tomorrow - 13 Feb

The following trials will take place tomorrow (13 Feb) at 7.30am on the St John's oval:

U12 St John's Rugby League team
U11 & U12 Port Curtis Rugby League team

Health & Physical Education Has Begun!

At St John’s we start the new year with Fitness Cards, where students can improve their own fitness results weekly.

It was wonderful to see the students eager and ready to go in their HPE lesson. Some were fresh and rested, others were feeling the pinch, but did their very best!

As the students’ fitness improves, their confidence in their abilities grow and they show excitement in their weekly gains.

Parents, we challenge you to practice the 7 exercises with your children at home and improve your fitness too!

Our students complete the following weekly:

Beep Test (20m shuttle run)
1-minute sit-ups
1-minute burpees
1-minute dips
1-minutes side jumps
1-minute skipping
Sit and reach

Dusting off the cobwebs in Week 3, saw the following highest Beep Test Results:

Week 1 Beep Test Results:

Girls: Penny Hale Year 6 9.9

Boys: William Bebendorf Year 5 9.10
Baxter Briskey Year 4 9.10

Port Curtis Sport Update ...

Congratulations to the following students upon their selection in the Port Curtis AFL team:

Fabian Royston
William Bebendorf
Harley Stokes (not in photo)
Brody Stokes (not in photo)

Queensland Team Selection

Harley Stokes recently competed in the Queensland state triathlon competition. He did an aquathon - swim and run.

With an amazing swim under his belt, Harley came home with gold, earning himself a place in the team to represent Queensland at the national event.

Congratulations Harley!

Dolphins NRL Visit St John’s

Last week, our students were visited by Dolphins NRL representatives. They talked with our students about the importance of positive wellbeing. Sixty-eight students also had the opportunity to enjoy games and drills with these inspiring NRL players.

Library News ...

Lunar (Chinese) New Year: February 10th

Chinese New Year is a significant holiday that is celebrated in many countries around the world, in addition to China. One of the most colourful events on the global calendar, it is a time of celebration and tradition, marked by various customs and rituals.

Fang Fang was born in China, but now she is Australian. When she invites her friend Lisa over to celebrate Chinese New Year, she is sure that Lisa will be bored. But Lisa is full of surprises!

Library Lovers Day: February 14th

Library Lovers Day is a celebration of the joy of reading and the central role that libraries play in fostering a love of literature.

Suzy – the children’s librarian – has organised a different activity for each day of the week. Library users – mums, dads, grandparents, carers, and children – from all backgrounds, cultures and abilities are invited to join in the fun. It is a celebration of the enduring importance of libraries and the value of preserving knowledge.

‘Thank you’ to the Lamb and Kanofski families for their generous preloved book donations to our library collection.

An enormous ‘THANK YOU’ to Danielle W (6G) and her donation of an entire series (20 books!) of NEW ‘Diary of a Minecraft Zombie’ books.

Regards
Mrs Skelhorn

Thank You To Our P&F Executive

Thank you to our newly elected P&F Executive Committee. Your generous donation of time, skill and enthusiam is greatly appreciated by our St. John's community.